No matter the reason, once you have decided to use cloth diapers on your children, there is still more deciding to do. Just the process of getting the cloth diapers can be overwhelming, especially to someone who has never used them before. There are just so many options available, which is awesome, but also OhEmGee! so stressful.

Some of my friends started their cloth diaper stashes by mixing and matching. They have sampled many diaper brands in a multitude of different styles. Arguably they do this to get a sense of which diaper works best for them and their baby. Going this route can help save money if you aren’t picky about a diaper brand and just buy when sales pop up. This is a completely valid way to determine what type of diaper you might want to use.

For me however, I needed to commit to one diaper right from the beginning. I didn’t like the idea of juggling multiple types and brands of diapers every time I laundered. The idea of organizing them by style so that I could easily grab one in the midst of a diaper change was overwhelming. And I didn’t want to continually be fighting with every different diaper to find the perfect fit each change. I like having one diaper that I can easily pull out of the dryer and stack on the shelf. When Gavin needs a change, I can throw the diaper together, pop it on him, and know that every diaper is going to fit the same way every time.

I like consistency.

I chose pocket diapers because back when I first wanted to try them out, there was a sale. I used them for a bit on Cameron and really liked how easy they were. When I decided I wanted to try cloth full time on Gavin, I knew that I wanted to find a diaper similar to those first ones I had bought.

Clearly, I didn’t actually put a lot of research into my decision. That’s why I asked my favourite cloth diaper company Hipkiddo to tell you why they chose to sell pocket diapers.

When we started Hipkiddo, we wanted to go with the best cloth diaper system/style that we had found, as there are so many options out there and some of them really aren’t great at all. We like the pocket diaper style, as the insert doesn’t move around too much within the diaper, unlike any other styles where the soaker simply rests on top of the inside of the diaper. We found this allowed for less leaking possibility, and they are actually less ‘floppy’ to deal with once the inserts are put in the pocket. We also ensured that our pocket diapers allowed for more than one insert to be used, for heavy wetters and for use overnight. -Joshua, Hipkiddo

What is awesome about this answer is that it encompasses everything I love about pocket diapers. Considering that Hipkiddo sells one-sized diapers, a system that will fit my baby early and last him his entire diaper life, I was very happy to chose this brand for my baby.

Once you have a preferred style and brand of diaper, you still have to determine how many diapers you want in your stash. This can be especially overwhelming to new parents who have yet to know how many diapers their babies will go through.

When determining the number of diapers you will want, the best question to ask yourself is how often you want to do laundry. I know, you never want to do laundry. I don’t either. But that’s the price we pay for going the reusable route. If you want to do laundry daily, you can probably be fine with roughly 12-15 diapers. Consider that a good daily minimum, especially for a newborn.

With cloth diapers, you want to aim to do a wash about twice a week minimum. If you’re like me and you avoid laundry as much as possible, then anywhere from 24-30 diapers should be sufficient. Any more and you might be tempted to never wash the diapers, which isn’t good for them (unfortunately).

My current stash has 28 Hipkiddo cloth diapers, plus a few stragglers from other brands. I’m not going to lie though, I’d love a few extra bamboo diapers, specifically this cow inspired print. That’s the thing you’ll notice once you “complete” your diaper stash. You’re always going to want more.

(Photo taken in July)

Good luck diapering!

What tips do you have for parents just starting on their cloth diaper journey?

The small print: I use Hipkiddo cloth diapers on Gavin. They’re an awesome cloth diaper choice if you’re looking for green, affordable diaper options. Be sure to Like Hipkiddo on Facebook and follow on Twitter to hear about chances to save and win. Hipkiddo provided cloth diapers for the purposes of this blog series but all opinions are my own.